Macklemore has donated his entire $1million earnings from Ed Sheeran‘s tour to Palestinians – with Robert Kraft matching with $2million to “aid in the region”.
This week, Macklemore has been embroiled in a major row over his impassioned “free Palestine” speech made while opening for Ed Sheeran at New Jersey’s Gillette Stadium. The speech prompted calls for Macklemore’s removal from figures like Pink and the Israeli American Council.
Macklemore was then announced to have been dropped from the tour, with Gillette Stadium owner Robert Kraft later confirming that he found Macklemore’s speech “deeply offensive and hurtful to the Jewish community”, resulting in his dismissal.
Now, Macklemore has made a new statement yesterday (September 16) about his firing, saying that he wanted to “bring the conversation back to where it belongs: to the Palestinian people who are still being killed, still living under military occupation, and still fighting for their freedom”.
He then announced he would donate the “entire $1million of my net earnings” from Sheeran’s tour to six organisations supporting Palestinian people, inviting Kraft to match his donation. “Whatever we disagree about, perhaps we can agree on this: Palestinian lives are worth protecting. A Palestinian life is no less valuable than any other life on this earth,” he added.
Macklemore went on to stress that “aid alone cannot address the conditions that make it necessary. This is a manmade injustice, and I believe it requires immediate political change. Palestinians have lived for decades without basic rights and should not have to wait another day to be free.
“When the news cycle moves on, which it will, don’t move with it,” he concluded. “Free Palestine.”
On the official Gillette Stadium social media account, Kraft – who is worth approximately $15billion – announced he would be donating $2million to “aid in the region”. Before Macklemore’s call to match his donation, Kraft stated that Sheeran asked to match his own donation to “fight this humanitarian crisis”. Kraft did not state which organisations he will donate to, while Sheeran has not confirmed any donations he has made so far.
Kraft added that he has previously worked to bring “young Palestinians and Israelis together to build businesses, create jobs, and forge relationships”.
“I have dedicated much of my life to building bridges between all people,” he added. “I believe deeply that all lives are worth protecting.”
Statement from Robert Kraft pic.twitter.com/as3f4RUKse
— Gillette Stadium (@GilletteStadium) September 16, 2026
In the wake of Macklemore’s removal, several artists have come out to support him.
All of Ed Sheeran’s support acts and backing band dropped out the Loop tour. FINNEAS, Lukas Graham, Aaron Rowe and Beoga all made statements supporting Macklemore, with Rowe writing: “I cannot stand by and allow billionaires to use their position of power to silence the rightful voices of those who speak up against Israeli genocide”.
Sheeran is yet to respond to his support acts pulling out.
Meanwhile, recent Sheeran support acts BIIRD and Myles Smith also came out in support of the rapper. Irish trad-folk band BIIRD wrote that “we stand unequivocally behind every word [Macklemore] said,” while Smith said that “what Palestinians are enduring is devastating and impossible to look away from. No child, no family, no innocent person should have to live under bombing, displacement, hunger, grief or fear.”
Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters waded into the debate to call Sheeran a “little prick” while praising Macklemore for doing “the right thing”, while Massive Attack also spoke on the controversy: “’Neutrality’ in the face of the slaughter of more than 20,000 children can never be neutrality”.
Sheeran is also yet to respond to these comments.
